Perrin Rogers refutes Senate staffer's claims of trying to 'sabotage' her career

TALLAHASSEE — A former Senate Majority Office colleague of Rachel Perrin Rogers — who has filed a formal complaint accusing state Sen. Jack Latvala of groping, sexually harassing her — is seeking to discredit her by saying she sought to sabotage her career working in the Legislature.

In a 14-page affidavit, first reported by Florida Politics, 22-year-old Lillian Tysinger described a yearlong professional and personal relationship with Perrin Rogers from her first day as a staffer in the Senate Majority Office on Nov. 14, 2016, to her last day on Nov. 5. She also said she did not submit the affidavit "as a favor" to Latvala.

Perrin Rogers has filed both an internal Senate complaint and a Rules Committee complaint against Latvala. She has accused him of sexually harassing her over a period of four years. She is one of six women who raised allegations against the state senator last month in interviews with POLITICO.

In Tysinger's affidavit, which was filed in Leon County court last Thursday, she accused Perrin Rogers of spreading false rumors about her prior to her being transferred to another office, including that she had had “numerous affairs with people in the political process.”

Tysinger said she was transferred to the Senate secretary's office, where her salary was $11,000 less annually than her previous job, and was given no reason for the transfer, which took effect on Nov. 5.

Senate President Joe Negron authorized the transfer of Tysinger, said Senate spokeswoman Katie Betta, who described the move as “an internal staffing decision.”

Text messages provided to POLITICO between Perrin Rogers and Tysinger do show a once-friendly relationship that quickly deteriorated just before Tysinger was transferred. The messages were provided by Perrin Rogers’ attorney.

“Did I do something wrong that you are mad at me about?” Tysinger wrote on Oct. 23 at 8:46 p.m.

“Can you find five minutes in your day to talk to me, please?” Tysinger wrote three minutes later.

“We don’t have anything to discuss,” Perrin Rogers wrote at 9:16 a.m. She then told Tysinger to direct questions about her job to her supervisor.

Tysinger also accuses Perrin Rogers of plotting against majority office press secretary LaQuisha Persak. “One night I was at Ms. Rogers’ house when she told me that she had called Senator Simpson about having Laquisha Persak removed from her position as Press Secretary,” she wrote in the affidavit.

Tysinger's allegations in the affidavit are only the latest chapter in what has become a very public fight between Latvala and Perrin Rogers.

On Monday, Simpson said there was a “smear campaign” being waged against Perrin Rogers and called for it to end.

“Rachel has been a trusted and valued member of my team for more than five years. Her tireless work ethic has served the people of my district and the state of Florida well. The incidents alleged in the media are disgusting. Since mid-last week there has been a smear campaign launched against Rachel. It must end immediately,” Simpson told POLITICO in a written statement.

Simpson is the future Senate president and a member of the chamber’s Rules Committee that will ultimately vote on and debate a punishment for Latvala, including possible expulsion.

She said Tysinger's affidavit contained “absolute lies and will be demonstrated as such in the appropriate legal venue.” She noted that “none of these false allegations give Jack Latvala permission to inappropriately touch my client."

Tysinger’s lawyer, Louis Jean-Baptiste, told POLITICO he worked with Latvala’s lawyer, Stephen Webster, but did not respond to repeated follow-up questions about who was paying him to represent Tysinger.

Tysinger said she has no ties to Latvala, saying in her affidavit "it is important to note that I am not friends with Senator Latvala, and I am not offering this statement as a favor to him."

But text messages provided to POLITICO from Perrin Rogers’ attorney appear to show Tysinger planned to attend his gubernatorial campaign rollout event on Aug. 16. Tysinger did not respond to follow-up questions about whether she’s attended any of Latvala’s campaign events. Latvala announced then that he was running for the 2018 Republican gubernatorial nomination.

In the affidavit, Tysinger said Perrin Rogers pushed for them both to attend Latvala’s Maine fundraiser in August. Tysinger said she declined to attend the event and said Latvala never invited Perrin Rogers to it. Perrin Rogers said she did not encourage Tysinger to attend the Maine event.